The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan is the first book in the Percy Jackson series.
Perseus Jackson, or Percy Jackson as he is usually called, is the son of a Greek
God. Not two Greek Gods, but one, his mother being... a mortal. 12 year old Percy
was living a normal life like any of us, until... well, he accidentally vaporized
his math teacher at school. If you wonder if Percy is a mortal although his dad is
a God? No, he isn't. He is a half-blood! (Harry Potter minds clicking? It is how
you'd think it is.) Half-bloods are neither full mortal nor full God. Being a
demigod(half-blood) comes with a free incoming of monster attacks. The Lightning
Thief is about when Zeus thought Percy had stolen his lightning bolt (why this
suspicion? You'll know).
'A fantastic blend of myth and modern' -Eoin Colfer, author of Artemis Fowl
I couldn't agree more. Riordan has combined the stories of Greek mythology
altogether and woven them into Percy's adventures as he tries to accomplish his
goal. Not only is it Greek mythology, the book shares some life morals too. Are you
a weirdo? or a nerd? or someone with a disability? Percy has his own share of
disabilities like ADHD, dyslexia and lack of concentration. But he's a demigod! and
a hero! So it doesn't matter if you're different. You are awesome and unique
however you are.
Some of my favourite things about this book are how the main character has
disabilities like being dyslexic.
The neon sign above the gate was impossible for me to read, because if there's
anything worse for my dyslexia than regular English, it's red cursive neon English.
The girls in the story are absolutely strong and badass! They are taught how to
battle and indulge in fighting too. There is also a modern approach as Gods and
Olympus move to the west and modernize with the Western Civilization. You fall in
love with sassy Percy as soon as you start reading the book. And Camp Half-Blood
becomes your favourite place! Percy cares about his friends a lot, and so do his
friends about Percy. The author has used a great deal of mythological creatures
like centaurs, Cerberus, Medusa and many others. Rick includes all real myths about
the Gods, and even shows the relations between two or more Gods, and their
backstory.
Although I didn't really know about Greek mythology, the story was enthralling. I
would recommend it to anyone who is interested in Greek mythology or fantasy
fiction. This book has numerous similarities with Harry Potter and would also have
Harry Potter fans obsessed.
SIMILARITIES:
1. There are three young heroes: a brainy girl (Annabeth/Hermione), a funny screw-
up type (Grover/Ron), and a somewhat troubled but very brave lead (Harry/Percy).
2. People freak when the Harry/Percy character says the name of a powerful
character.
3. The main bad guy (Kronos/Voldemort) is seeking to return to his former power,
but most people are totally in denial of that happening.
4. The heroes train at a school that divides its students according to their
character. (Chiron, the head trainer of the camp, equals Dumbledore.)
5. Chiron/Dumbledore knows a prophecy about Percy/Harry but won't tell Percy/Harry
what it is exactly.
6. Percy/Harry has a gross stepfather named Smelly Gabe who protects him during his
childhood, so Smelly Gabe obviously equals the Dursleys.
7. Harry/Percy can talk to a certain animal because of his special gifts (Harry
could talk to snakes, Percy can talk to horses).
8. Riordan's three young heroes face down a three-headed dog at the end of their
big quest, which if I'm not mistaken is exactly what happens in HP1 (granted, the
three-headed dog is straight out of Greek mythology, so I should cut Riordan some
slack on this one).
